How Long Before a Navel Orange Tree Flowers?

by Athena Hessong

Seedless navel oranges start out as orange blossoms on a tree.

Navel orange (Citrus sinensis) flowers do not need pollination to produce fruit, but you must have flowers for the fruits to form. Navel oranges, like the "Washington" variety, grow in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 9 through 10. If your navel orange does not produce fruit as expected, you may have a problem with the growing conditions. Knowing when to expect the flowers and what may be causing a delay in blooming can help you fix the problem and get fruit from your tree.

Typical Bloom Time

Navel oranges produce flowers in the spring, and the greatest number of flowers will usually be on the tree in April, but do not expect every single flower to produce a fruit. Even with navel oranges, which do not need a pollinator, only a small percentage of the flowers will become fully grown fruit.

Off-Season Bloom

Occasionally, navel oranges, like other citrus, produce blooms in other seasons than spring. This is known as off-season bloom, and it likely indicates the tree underwent a shortage of water the previous month. It will take a month after dry conditions before a citrus tree produces off-season blooms. If these flowers produce oranges, the fruit will not be very good to eat because fruit from off-season blooms usually is dry and has a thick skin.

Bloom Drop

About a month after the flowers start to appear on your navel orange, you may notice that most of them fall off. This dropping of flowers and tiny fruits from your tree in late spring or early summer is the tree's natural fruit drop. By dropping most of the flowers and fruit, the navel orange tree is protecting itself from the ill effects of excessive fruit bearing, which could weigh down the branches or cause the fruit to be smaller in size than normal.

Problems That Affect Blooming

If your tree is not producing blooms in the spring, the tree could be deficient in one or more nutrients. Nitrogen helps with leaf and flower formation on the tree. If you notice yellowing leaves and stunted growth, along with a reduction in the number of flowers or a complete absence of blooms, the tree may be nitrogen-deficient. Variegated older leaves and a reduction in the number of flowers on your navel orange could mean the tree needs phosphorous.

About the Author

Athena Hessong began her freelance writing career in 2004. She draws upon experiences and knowledge gained from teaching all high-school subjects for seven years. Hessong earned a Bachelor in Arts in history from the University of Houston.

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